India's government today summoned the Pakistani ambassador to blame "elements" from his country for involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks and request that "strong action" be taken.

Pakistan's high commissioner in Delhi was called to the foreign office to be informed that India believed "elements from Pakistan" had carried out the coordinated gun and grenade attacks on 10 targets around the city, in which at least 172 people were killed.

The envoy was informed that India "expects that strong action would be taken against those elements", a foreign ministry spokesman told reporters.

The move exerted further pressure on the Pakistan government, which insists it had no role in the violence, and runs the risk of further increasing tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours.

The US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, called earlier today for "total transparency" from Pakistan over the attacks.

"What we are emphasising to the Pakistani government is the need to follow the evidence wherever it leads," Rice told reporters travelling with her to London, where she will meet David Miliband, the foreign secretary.

"I don't want to jump to any conclusions myself on this, but I do think that this is a time for complete, absolute, total transparency and cooperation and that's what we expect."

Rice has cut short her scheduled visit to Europe and will go to India on Wednesday, as Washington steps up efforts to calm tensions between India and Pakistan.

India's junior foreign minister, Anand Sharma, said today all the gunmen were now known to have come from Pakistan.

"What has happened is a grave setback to the process of normalisation of relations and the confidence-building measures with Pakistan," he told the AFP news agency. Pakistani leaders "must now deliver on their promise that Pakistan will not allow its soil to be used for attacks in India", he added.

Sri Prakash Jaiswal, India's minister of state for home affairs, said last night the country had stepped up intelligence efforts and that state governments were being asked to "increase security to a war level".

The Press Trust of India, India's main news agency, also reported that the government was considering suspending the four-year-old peace process with Pakistan.

In response, Pakistan said it would end military operations against Islamist militants on the Afghan border, which are critical to the hunt for al-Qaida-linked militants, due to the "unwanted conflict" with Delhi.

India says it has proof the estimated 10 militants who went on the rampage at two luxury hotels, a Jewish centre, a tourist cafe and other targets in the commercial city had connections with Pakistan.

Police officers involved in the interrogation of the only attacker captured alive said the militants had spent months in Pakistan having military-style training.

Azam Amir Kasav, a 21-year-old Pakistani national who speaks fluent English, told interrogators his team took orders from "their command in Pakistan", the investigators, speaking anonymously, told Reuters. The training was organised by the Lashkar-e-Taiba group - which has long-standing relationships with Pakistan's security establishment - and involved former members of the Pakistani army, they added.

Pakistan's president, Asif Ali Zardari, said today the attacks should not cause conflict between his country and India, which have fought three wars since partition in 1947.

"Such a tragic incident must bring opportunity rather then the defeat of a nation," he told Aaj TV. "We don't think the world's great nations and countries can be held hostage by non-state actors."

As many schools and shops opened this morning for the first time since the attacks on Wednesday evening, state government officials said the final siege site to be cleared, the Taj Mahal hotel, had now been completely checked. Nineteen foreigners are known to be among the dead, including one Briton.

"We were apprehensive about more bodies being found. But this is not likely. All rooms in the Taj have been opened and checked," said a spokesman for Maharashtra's state government.

In India, the government is struggling to contain public anger over the attacks with demonstrators taking to the streets to vent their anger over the inability to stop the killings.

The chief minister of Maharashtra state, Vilasrao Deshmukh, said today he had offered to resign. India's home minister, Shivraj Patil, stepped down yesterday.

Lashkar-e-Taiba, which is fighting Indian control of the disputed Kashmir region, was behind a deadly 2001 assault on the Indian parliament that pushed New Delhi and Islamabad to the brink of war.